The Hidden Links
by Knight of Black and Gold
Summary: Short stories that happened between each episode of Invasion covering stuff we never see on screen: How did the Reach and Light first meet? How did the Tigress mission start? Who told Cheshire where Speedy was? and more!
1. Face to Face

**All of these stories take place between episodes of Young Justice: Invasion. The time will simply be stated as Before: (Episode Name). They will start with between episode 1 and episode 2, then 2 and 3, ect. Enjoy!**

 **Quick Reminder Earthlings is the episode where Beast Boy, Miss Martian, and Superboy are on Rann after Happy New Year where the Krolotean invasion has been revealed.**

* * *

Before Earthlings

 **AMBASSADOR'S OFFICE, REACH HOMEWORLD**

 _Reach Ambassador POV_

"[Human nonsense] Krolo," the Main Man said as he tore a robotic duplicate of the human leader in two.

"Freeze footage," I tell the computer. "Can we confirm these events Warrior?" I tell the Warrior assigned to me.

"GURRRRRR," the Warrior grumbles at me. "Our agent on Mars sent the footage to us. The Main Man did attack the human leader."

"I don't care about the Main Man Warrior. He is a small fry, who can be bribed into submission. Those pests meanwhile..." I ponder what they could be planning with the human race. "The meta-gene potential the Martian Warrior has told us about is the property of the Reach alone!"

"The Kroloteans have been focused on the Rannian sector." We have known for nearly a year that the Kroloteans have become the primary enemy for the Rannian Science Counsel. "Our intelligence estimates 90% of their forces are in that sector of the galaxy. The remaining 10% are spread out across Lantern space."

"So any Krolotean forces on Earth can be considered mere scouts," I ask the Warrior.

"Most probably," the Warrior says. "The meta-gene will be ours for the taking. The Kroloteans lack the number to threaten us."

"Unless of course they found a way to get their forces between Rann and Earth," a voice said. I thought it was only the Warrior and I in the room.

"Excellent theory, but whoever you are I don't wished to be disturbed until the warrior and I complete our meeting," I tell whoever rudely barged in here.

"I'm not here to tell you theories, I'm here to give facts." The voice emerges from the shadows and reveals himself to be an non-reach humanoid. "And who better to give advice about Earth than an earthling." The Warrior stiffs up as he prepares for battle.

"Klarion [unknown alien language]," the humanoid says. The Warrior charges at him to restrain the earthling, however a portal opens up. The Warrior charges into the portal and it closes once he is through. "Now that we are alone, I have an offer that I wish to present to you." He says now in fluent reach.

"Guards!" I yell as I press a device. Three doors open on all sides of my office. Two guards emerge from one door and one guard emerges from each of the other two doors. The two guards hold up their weapons... then immediately collapse. The two guards on the floor both showed swords coming out of their back. The other two lean against the wall but drop their weapons in weakness. After witnessing my guards in such poor shape I stared at the intruder, "There were 20 guards outside did you kill them all."

"If my universal translator worked properly, then medical scans of your species let me hold back so I could did not kill your guards." The earthling then walked up to my desk and picked up one of the artifacts I keep on it, a Lantern Power Ring won during our war with the Green Lantern Corp, damaged but it made a nice trophy. "After all I'm looking to have a better relationship with your people than what you have with the Green Lantern Corp."

"The earthlings are?"

"Of course," he said with an egotistical smile. "Specifically the meta-human population." Well at least the earthling knows what I'm interested in.

"Why should I listen to you?" I ask. "The reach could easily take your world without any help."

"Take it from who? The earthlings?" He fondled the ring a little. "The Green Lantern Corp?" He put the ring back down on my desk. "Or the Kroloteans?"

"The Lantern Corp would not risk war with us over your puny world. I'm sure you heard the Warrior and myself have a conversation about how the Krolotean threat to our interests on your world are minimal." The earthling then tosses me a portable computer.

"I had it translated for you." I begin to look over the computer files. After a while I start to speak again. "These are..."

"The locations of every single Krolotean base on Earth and Rannian sector. Alongside the technology they are using to transport between the two."

"How did you get your hands on this?"

"It's simple, I helped them set up all these bases."

"Why would you tell me about them?"

"My organization, The Light, and I wish to find... more reliable allies."

"The Kroloteans are not reliable?" I say sarcastically.

"Apparently."

"Hmmmm," I ponder the earthlings offer. "Stay with me, but bring back the Warrior so we can discuss this." The earthling smiles.

"[human language] Klarion [human language]"

All of a sudden my warrior, another earthling, and an animal appear through a portal. My Warrior attempts to attack all three of the earthlings but I intervene. "Warrior stop!"

"The intruders!" he complained

"Will wait outside!" I respond forcefully. The Warrior stands down.

"That's it!" the other earthling complained. "I wanted a chance to really go crazy." The mystical earthling changed his face to give a stronger smile.

"You will get your chance Klarion," the original earthling tells his friend. "But for now we wait."

Once the two humans left the room I sat down at my desk.

"Are you just going to let them get away?!" the warrior asks in anger.

"Maybe," I respond monotonically.

"MAYBE!" he slams the desk. "What could such meat possibly offer us-" I flip the monitor to show him the evidence that earthling provided for us.

"Apparently quite a lot."

"So some rats are on the planet," he dismisses. "It's not as though we cannot send an exterminator."

"Of course we could deal with the Kroloteans. The problem is that somebody more problematic than the Kroloteans could come along: Sinestro, Mongul, or even-"

"I get it we have to accelerate our time table."

"And to accelerate our timetable we should collect allies."

"[GRUNT]"

"Now put on your best face, I'm about to let them back in."

"The Reach does not need partners!"

"I'm well aware of the Imperial Guard's views, but as the head of the Foreign ministry, and an appointee of the high council, I must disagree."


	2. Crazy Coffee Ideas

**This is the first part of a multi-part series about the dynamic between Artemis, Wally, and Dick on how Tigress mission began.**

 **Quick reminder Alienated is the episode where they raid the Krolotean Base on Malina Island and Kaldur's defection to Black Manta is revealed.**

* * *

Before Alienated

 **STARBUCKS, PALO ALTO**

 _Artemis POV_

"Kaldur did what!" I yelled. I got up and gave Dick an intense stare for a few seconds.

"Uhhh Artemis..." he eventually said, snapping me out of my focus. I turn around to see that everyone is staring at the two of us. I look down and see that I spilled both Dick's and my coffee.

"Damn it," I say as I grab some napkins to clean up the floor. After cleaning up part of it Dick kneels down to clean up some of the spilt coffee too.

"Sorry for spilling your coffee."

"Don't worry about it. I probably would have responded the same way." Once the two of us finish cleaning up the floor we sit up at the table again.

"Just why? Why would he-" I struggle with the disbelief of what Dick has told me. Was this because of Tula? I knew that he liked Tula before she and Garth started dating. But would he really join Black Manta because of what happened to her. "Why Black Manta?" His mentor's archenemy! And Manta helped kill Tula on top of that!

"Because... Black Manta is his father." I take a second to stare at Dick, then into an abyss as I ponder his words. "Aqualad learned, shortly before Tula's death."

"Did Aquaman-" I attempt to ask. I-personally-know the cost of keeping secrets from your friends. The tense atmosphere of mistrust around you. The personally pain the people around you feel when they learn of your betrayal. And the long road to recover the respect I-you have to take.

"Yeah," he tells me with disappointment. "He knew and chose not to tell anyone."

"Does anyone else on the team know?"

"Everyone else does," he tells me. I stare at him for a few seconds.

"Everyone?" I ask.

"Yes, you and Wally are the last people I have to tell."

"Ok I get that," I tell him quickly. "But everybody else knew before me."

"Everyone but Wally." Wally was SUPPOSED to meet Dick and I here, but apparently his lab discovered some interesting particle or wave or something physicsyyy.

"Even Donna and Mary." Those two are retired they had to have not found out yet-

"Even Donna and Mary." I'm... I'm the one out of the loop? "That's what retirement gets you."

"Ughhhh! Don't remind me!" I moan, feeling guilty about retiring. "I gave up exotic forests, mystical castles, and mixed martial arts for the joys of home cooking, reading books in libraries, and learning how to paint in lecture halls." I complained to him.

"That sounds amazing," Dick says joyfully. "Cooking food instead of anti-poison herbs. Libraries of science-fiction instead of a library of crime reports about stolen [censored]. Trying to learn the arts instead of how to construct a lava-submarine." Dick is legitimately wants to do everything I just said. Which is why he's an idiot! Or he is mocking me.

Either way retirement is awful!

He has no idea what I would do for the chance to punch something! Or poison something.

And come on! I totally want to ride in a lava-submarine, and a bunch of stolen [censored] is the greatest teaser ever! Since he thinks I am so in love with retirement (idiot), he has no idea how tempting his ideas are to get me back into the hero game. But-in spite of my true feelings-I play it calm.

"Come on tell me all about it," Dick asks.

* * *

Some Boring Amount of Time Later

"Keep talking," Dick asks very politely. So politely that I didn't tell him to #$%! cooking, and talk about stolen [censored]. That last one was so seductive I would jump at the first chance I get to put back on the green. If baywatch and I wouldn't fight for the rest of our lives, I would join the team again in a heartbeat.

"Why don't you tell me about what you have been doing?" I ask him, very interested in what he would say.

"Come on you don't want to hear about that." Yes I #%^&ing do! I will do anything to hear about it. Or live it and never tell Wally.

"You came here to talk about Kaldur, let's talk about Kaldur," I say. Dick makes a series of facial expressions. He continues in silence once he stops his facial tick. He then drank from his coffee cup, only to put it down once he realized it was empty.

"It-It... It's not easy," Dick says uncomfortably. He continued to look around awkwardly as if he was hiding something.

"I know," I tell him. "Remember the mole thing."

"Humh, ha, HA, the good old days," Dick laughs a bit.

"Maybe Kaldur will betray Black Manta the way Superboy betrayed Lex, or M'gann and Queen Bee or..." I don't complete my sentence.

"You and your dad." Dick completed for me.

"Me..." I look at my empty coffee cup and wish there was something to drink. "... and my dad." The two of us are silent for a little bit. "Maybe Kaldur and his dad will end up like me and my dad." Dick simply blinks quickly. It's weird that I could see that because he is wearing shades. "Are you alright?"

"I... I..." Dick looks like he needs to get something off his chest.

"Is there something you want to say?" I ask wondering if this has anything to do with...

"[cough] [cough]" Dick fake coughs, very obviously (and I thought retirement would dull my skills), and looks around. "You don't plan to return to the hero game anytime soon right?" Does he seriously believe that I DON'T want to return to the hero game? Well... I guess wanting to and planning are two different things.

"No," I'm not telling him a lie. Planning and wanting are two different things.

"The rest of the league doesn't know this..." Dick says with a serious, captivating aura. "...but the reason Kaldur defected to Black Manta, was... because I told him to."

I just blink at him for a few seconds. Just. WOW. Did he tell him to strike out his own like he did after what happened between him and Batman? "How bad was the advice that you game him?"

"What?" he says very confused.

"I mean I could understand the kind of advice you would give him." I start channeling my inner-Nightwing. "Your mentor was a jack ## who kept secrets from you that you deserved to know. In order to make sure that they never-"

"I didn't give him advice that he misinterpreted," Nightwing interrupts. "I told him: Black Manta is your father, join his organization." He tells me with a straight face.

"I-You-What?" I ask very confused.

"Kaldur hasn't betrayed us, he has become an infiltrator," Dick clarifies.

"Ohhhhh... Why are you telling me this?" Dick is a professional, everything he says about his job, every facial expression, and every little move is made to tell somebody what he wanted them to know and think. Batman can... and Jason could... do it better. If someone wasn't careful, one of them could easily manipulate you into doing their bidding.

"I-I need to talk to somebody about this."

* * *

Some FAR MORE INTERESTING Amount of Time Later

"So why did you feel the need to talk to me about this," I asked him. He explained to me Aqualad and his plan to infiltrate the Light. But given how well it seems to have gone so far I don't see what he is so stressed about.

"It's because I haven't been able to talk to anybody about it," he responds.

"I thought you were in contact with Kaldur."

"I have contacted with him, but I am not in contact with him."

"The difference being..."

"[Sigh] We prearrange meeting times to meet in person because then we don't risk communication interception."

"How often do you talk?"

"Every two or three weeks."

"That's a long time to spend with a super villain."

"That's a long time to spend alone," he corrects me.

"Is there nobody with him."

"Why would I send somebody else with him?"

"Because we all know somebody who needed a partner," I remind him. He smirks a little.

"Ha. I guess we do," the two of us think about the past for a while. "But who would I send?" he asks a question that causes me to smile.

* * *

 **MANTA SUB, ATLANTIC OCEAN**

 _Black Manta POV_

"Computer connect," I tell the device. Million dollar equipment for a new monitor when I entered the Light and the best upgrade is that Alexa is attached. I look up at the monitor as the others start to connect.

 **"L-3 Connected."**

 **"L-2 Connected."**

 **"L-6 Connected."**

 **"L-1 Connected."**

 **"L-4 Connected."**

 **"L-7 Connected."**

"The meeting is now in session," Klarion said deviously.

"As Klarion is so eager to report..." Vandal Savage started talking. "...our mission to contact the Reach was a success."

"I'd assume that they need a place to stay," Queen Bee said.

"As much as I assume they would enjoy your hospitality," I interject "But I believe my domain is better suited to hide an alien vessel."

"Vrai," the Brain adds in his French accent. "Le Earth's waters provide ample cover for the Reach's ship."

"Since they took up our offer for test subjects should we start picking some out," Lex Luthor says.

"I can send agents out as soon as possible, but I will need both our Queen and Manta to assist in transport around the globe," Ra's offers.

"All of which can be dealt with in due time," Vandal Savage noted. "Our new allies have an more immediate demand. The immediate removal of all Kroloteans."

"Well isn't that convenient," I add. "We gathered most of them all in one place."

"And our new allies have given us a bomb to dispose of them."

"I can have my people watching the Kroloteans in Metropolis be discovered," Lex adds

"And I can have my son pick them up," I add.

There is an aura of silence afterwards.

"We have to give test him sometime."

"But with the future of our alliance at stake?" Ra's adds. "Should we really be putting that much trust in a child."

"What better test could there be for my son?"

"I agree," Savage unexpectedly adds. "I find testing my children works best with high stakes."

"Well that didn't work out for me?" Lex points out.

"Perhaps we should have him shadowed?" Queen Bee asks.

"I can overlook him personally?" I add.

"Nah! Kids are always different when daddy's not around." Klarion adds with a mischievous smile.

"I agree with Klarion's... poorly worded statement," Savage adds. "I say we send Sportsmaster."

"Second," Ra's adds.

"Aye," Klarion, Bee, and Lex add.

"Then I believe we are all in agreement," I say. "Sportsmaster will watch over my son's recovery and execution of Kroloteans."

"How about notre new partner?" Brain asks. "I'm sure they will want to confirm that the Kroloteans are eradicated by this weapon they are providing."

"Hmmmm, I would rather have my son be watched over by a fellow father, but I guess it will have to do."

"Excellent!"

"Does your son work alone?" Lex asked. "He should really hire an assistant. Mine always comes in handy."


	3. Roy's Savior

**Quick reminder Salvage is the episode of Roy's intervention.**

* * *

Before Salvage

 **DAGGAT CHINA HEADQUARTERS, SHANGHAI, CHINA**

 _Cheshire POV_

"Sensei I'm in position," I tell my master over the communicator.

"Can you repeat the mission?" he asks of me as though I am a novice.

"Break into Daggat Corporation's China headquarters, Retrieve data on their new medical technology, and assassinate their international CEO, Roland Daggat, who is visiting because he didn't pay the League of Shadows for an assassination job."

"I did not tell you about our past transactions with Daggat."

"I have my own ways of figuring things out [giggle] [giggle]" except for the one thing I need to find out for Lian's father.

"We'll see about that," he replies irritated before cutting me off.

I pull out my work mask to scan for heat signatures. An initial look of the building shows that all of the security is in Daggat's office. Huddled together as though they are expecting somebody to barge in.

Well if they want me, who am I to say no.

I move to the front entrance of the building. Daggat's China HQ is a large sprawl with no building higher than 3 floors. Unlike their Gotham World HQ which is a 60 story skyscraper. As I approach the front door I see that they have been left open.

"Why thank you!" I tell no one.

I take one step into the main room and realize why. There are three bodies with blood splattered across the floor. From this angle the blood has spilled into an R shape. I start to walk slowly through the rest of the building. Daggat's office is on the opposite side of the building, two floors up. I just need to check and see if whoever did this also took care of my target.

I walk up to the elevator and press the blood stained button. The elevator takes long enough for me to assume that it came from the top floor. As the doors open I am treated to three dead bodies. But not all of them were guards, one of them seemed to be a scientist. So is this just an assassin with a scope of killing the entire board, or a sociopath that will kill everything in their path. I hold my sword up incase it's the latter as the elevator opens.

 _"I started a joke"_

I hear some music come out of the opening door. I'm carful on my first step out of the elevator, so as to avoid the first body on the floor. There are four more in the hall, all of which lead towards Daggat's office.

 _"Which started the whole world crying"_

The music continued as I walked through the hallway, slowly getting louder. As I got closer to one of the bodies, I saw that it was beaten to death with a fire extinguisher. It then occurs to me that all the other guards were killed with sharp or other useful objects normally in the building. Did this mysterious assassin beat them all to death with their own hands, without equipment or superpowers?

 _"But I didn't see"_

I take the final turn towards Daggat's office and see a door wide open. As I get closer I can tell that there is one person standing in an office surrounded by five dead bodies and a burning mass in the center of the room. As I get closer I see that he is holding a blunt object in his hand. I get closer to have a better look at this assassin.

 _"That the joke was on meeeeeee-"_

The man wearing a hood beat the audio player with a crowbar to end the music. "[SMASH] [SMASH]"

At this point I am standing outside Daggat's office. Close enough to tell that none of the bodies in the room are Daggat himself. Though they are the half of the people who run this facility.

"If you are wondering-" the assassin begins to say. I immediately move into a defensive position. "Daggat's body is right behind me."

He is standing in front of a firey p-

Oh.

I guess the anti-toxin systems in my mask blocked out the smell of roasted-

"Fitting that he would meet the same fate as his empire."

"Are you going to burn this place to the ground?" I ask.

As I say that the buildings outside erupt into an upwards flame. In particular two of them make it seem as though horns are growing out of the hooded assassin's head as he stares upon his work.

"That answers your question."

"One of them," I respond.

"You have more, after I blew up a corprate campus?" he says sarcastically. "That's unexpected."

"Don't get me wrong I like that somebody did my chore for me. But I doubt you killed Roland Daggat out of the goodness of your heart."

"That's part of the reason actually. The corrupt #^$%!^# escaped me in Gotham after causing the deaths of fifty people. There's no way I'm going to allow something like that."

"So are you a superhero?" I ask intrigued.

"I'm better," he says egotisticaly.

"You mentioned that was part of the reason. What's the other?"

"You of course," he says charismatically.

"Why thank you! But I have-" I have a addict. I have a self-hating idiot. I have a wreck of a human being... for a husband. "-someone."

"No because you..." he finally turns around to show that he is wearing a domino mask with a mouth cover that hides most of his face. "Jade Harper are here because you are one of five."

Great is this guy trying to recruit me for a team of some- Wait! Did he just call me Jade... Harper?

"Your brother in law, the directionless Jim who is trying to run away from what he was meant to be in Metropolis."

What is he trying to get at?

"Alongside your husband Red Arrow, who is currently wasting away on whatever gets him by day to day."

He better not bring her into this.

"Of course your daughter Lian-"

My maternal instincts take hold. I jump at him with my sword. He jumps back with a smile and grabs a box cutter off the desk. When I try to run at him again he slides a chair towards me, I jump over it easily. But while I am in the air I am unable to avoid a second chair he threw at me. So I have to cut it with the sword and have the chair go around me in the air. I land on the ground but my sword is too low and stance too poor. I attempt to swing at him, but he uses the crowbar to prevent it from touching me. The assassin lets go of the crowbar, grabs my sword holding hand, brings it behind my back, causing me to drop the sword, and holds the box cutter to my neck.

"You fight as though you have the weight of the world on your shoulders," he says mockingly before whispering in my ear. "But you know your greatest responsibility is currently spending time with her grandmother."

Enraged at his repeated mentions of Lian I attempt to headbutt him. However he steps back, letting go of me without using the box cutter that was next to my neck. I turn around and see that his had had four fingers held up as he stares at me, with a fifth twitching.

"You are here-" he says twitching his thumb. "Jim is in Metropolis-" he says twitching his pointer. "Red Arrow is in Washington-" he says moving the middle one. "Lian with your mother in Gotham-" he says twitching his ring finger as I get back into battle position. "But where is this little piggy?" he says as he stops twitching his pinky finger. "Where is little Speedy?" he mocks me.

"So is that why you brought me here?" I ask him. "To try and answer the question that has stumped so many for so long."

"To try and answer the question?" he replies perplexed.

"Yeah. For whatever reason you think- you need to- find Speedy. Well the Justice League couldn't! Red Arrow couldn't! I-" I say enraged.

"Ha... HAHAHA-" he starts laughing after my rant.

"What's so funny?" I say pulling out my sai.

"You seem to think I need your help to find Speedy," he tells me amused. "I already know where Speedy is," he announces proudly.

...

...

I takes me a second to process what he just offered me. Could he really find- If he did would Roy-

"I can help you save Roy Harper," he offers me. "Both of them."

"Why should I believe you?" I say as I realize that I have relaxed my stance.

"Because I'm better than the Justice League, better than Batman! I can fix the problems that they-HE never could!"

"And one of those is finding Speedy."

"Why stop at finding him when I can save him! And Red Arrow along the way?" He turns around and stares at the flames outside. "Something Batman never could." He said with a sour taste on the Batman.

"Who are you?" I ask. "And why do you care about being better than Batman?" Is... Is this what I have been waiting for. Can I really save-

"I'm his fault." He responds as I stare at the back of his red hood.


	4. Crazy Coffee Idea's 2: Dinner

**Just to be clear these stories take place literally between each episode, like how the 16th is between the 15th and the 17th.**

 **I'm going to do one for between each episode in Invasion.**

 **This is the second part of the Tigress mission story.**

 **Beneath is the episode where the all female team infiltrates Bialya**

* * *

Before Beneath

 **PALO ALTO**

 _Wally West POV_

"You agreed!" I yell in shock spitting food out of my mouth. There were many things that I was not expecting.

I didn't expect my best friend to ask my girlfriend to do anything behind my back.

I didn't expect him to ask her to go on an undercover mission with our apparently not-traitorous friend.

I didn't expect him to ask her to fake her death and upend the life we made after retirement.

But the thing that has me so mad has nothing to do with that... Dick. It's that Artemis said yes.

That why she made my favorite meal (a bunch of everything) tonight!

"Kaldur needs help," Artemis tells me slowly, as though that will somehow make me feel better about this.

"Then Dick should help him, Aquaman should help him, Garth should help him, somebody besides us!" I yell holding her hands. "We're retired we don't-"

"Wally that's an excuse, and there is no excuse not to help our friends, especially when I might be the only person who can."

"I don't believe that we are the only people that can-"

"But we are!" Artemis interrupts me. "There are four people who know the truth about Kaldur, he is surrounded by his enemies, his friends have turned against him, and he is getting deeper and deeper into an abyss every day! I think I might be the only person who can help him."

Artemis argument, the fact that she fought back didn't surprise me. Once she sets her mind to something she's going to do it. But what I head from her just now isn't her. I know her, asI know him. She didn't make her own argument, she made his!

"How did Dick tell you about Kaldur?" I ask her. Artemis seemed puzzled by my train of thought.

"He just..." she paused for a while. "Just came out and told me when I sat down."

"That Aqualad was on a secret mission?"

"No. Actually he didn't plan to tell me that." That leaves me puzzled.

"What did he tell you?"

"Well first he said that Aqualad had betrayed us to work with Black Manta... because... he's Kaldur's father!" She said that last part with a dramatic reveal. That would probably push me to the dark side too. Artemis examines me for a second and I feel defensive. "You don't seem surprised to learn Black Manta is his father." Artemis crosses her arm.

"Wellllllll... Kaldur told me," I said quietly afraid of what will follow. "[GULP] He needed to help him." I say instantly regretting my words.

"Then Dick should help him, Aquaman should help him, Garth should help him, somebody besides you!" Artemis says smirking, channeling me from earlier.

"Well... Aquaman always knew and just chose not to tell him, so not the person he wanted to go to." Artemis eyes widened at the reveal that Kaldur's mentor hid something like that from him. "Like from birth!" Both of us are probably thinking: Would our mentor have done something like that! "Yeah its messed up."

"Ya don't say."

We just stare at each other for a while before I speak up.

"Back to this stupid crazy insane idea of yours! What did Dick tell you after Kaldur's betrayal?" I ask Artemis.

I take a step back to think about everything Dick has done recently.

He's spent the last month informing every hero associated with the Team and the Justice League that Kaldur has betrayed us and that if we come into contact with him don't trust him. But I'm the last person he chose to inform! The guy whose known him longer than anyone on the team, the guy who CO-FOUNDED the team! I'm the last person!

Now I learn that Kaldur's a double agent. I'd be chill with that, and actually quite happy, because Kaldur's not a traitor. I'd be fine if he didn't tell me for Kaldur's safety, but why did he tell Artemis and not me? Sure she was part of the team but the three of us and Red Arrow go way back.

And now I learn that he had a meeting with my girlfriend where he somehow talked her into FAKING HER DEATH to join Black Manta's organization. Why couldn't they have just had an affair?!

He could have told the two of us together, but instead he arranged for a meeting where only she could be there. A meeting where she came out with the idea that she should FAKE HER DEATH. No mater how many times I repeat it to myself, I just can't believe Artemis would agree to it. Especially after the life we made here.

He did this all on purpose.

Dick talked her- manipulated her! Into agreeing to FAKE HER DEATH.

"Huh. Ummmm-" I stop imaging what I'm going to do to Dick once I can get ahold of him to listen. "He actually tried to ignore the Kaldur thing, then we started some boring conversation over..." Artemis ponders what to say next. "...something irrelevant about what we do here." Irrelevant about out life here? Is Artemis bored of civilian life? Is that why she- No that can't be enough to push her into something like this. She would just do a small patrol around the city not a 3 month mission. There has to be something else. "But then Dick just broke down mid conversation."

"Dick broke down?" Dick has had his emotional moments, but breaking down? I don't think he would break down in a Starbucks. Unless he wanted the sympathy. To make people susceptible.

"Yeah he felt very guilty about sending Aqualad undercover."

"But Dick didn't feel guilty about sending you undercover," I reply. That's a big inconsistency.

"Wally I suggested that Kaldur needs a partner," Artemis sprang to Dick's defense. Artemis suggested it?

"Are you sure?"

"Am I sure? Of course I know what I said."

I want to tell her that she doesn't know that. That there is somebody out there that get you to do things by making you think its the only way, that its the right thing to do, that it was your idea. But after the falling out Dick had with Batman, the reason he became Nightwing… I didn't think he would do that to Artemis. That he would brainwash her!

Artemis come up to me and gives me a hug.

"Babe. I know that you just want to keep me safe, but I have to do this."

"You'll regret it."

"You don't know that." Artemis says as she walks away from me.

"I think I do." I sulk into my lap, clenching my fist.

I can't talk her out of this... but maybe I can talk Dick out of it.

* * *

 **MANTA FLYER**

 _Black Manta POV_

"Father," Kaldur calls my attention as he walks into my office. "I have compiled a list of potential assistants." I put down my coffee at this pleasant surprise.

"What made you change your mind?" I ask my son. A week ago he was resolved to work solo, not wanting somebody who may try to usurp him.

"I figured you were not going to let this go." Kaldur pulled up several files. "I figured it was best to start as soon as possible." I smile at my son as I picked up the files he compiled. "All of them are well-trained and can be hired for the right price."

"Kaldur, greedy subordinated do not make good subordinates." I teach my son. "Perhaps they can help in a pinch but you want long-term employees." Based on my son's facial expressions I can tell that he took the lesson to heart.

"Of course father." Kaldur looks through the files and removes nine of the sixteen. "I believe these would make the best choices." I look at the seven left over. They are all well trained and disciplined assassins from the ages of 18 and 25. All of them are listed as having their own vendettas against members of the Justice League. Though one of them catches my eye for what was not on the file.

"This one has no photo. Why?" I ask my son.

"Tigress? She takes stealth very seriously," he tells me. A bold move coming from this Tigress. But one that displays professionalism. "When I met her-"

"You already met her?" I didn't expect my son to take the initiative to interview potential candidates.

"Her mother was paralyzed during a fight between Green Arrow and a drug cartel run by Brick."

"And she blames Green Arrow?" I ask my son seeing if he can answer the actual question.

"It was Green Arrow's explosive Arrow that pushed her mother off a building, she's trained ever since." That's the type of motivation I look for in an employee.

"When can you hire her?"

"Father! There are six other candidates we should consider."

"There are six other candidates with insignificant motivation." I hold up several of the files. "Petty arrests by the League, mistakes of their own making, and insecurities drive these other six candidates. No my son, what you need is somebody with true motivation."

"[RING]"

"I have a meeting to attend." I put on my helmet and head to the conference room.

"Very well father," Kaldur responds. As I walk through the door he says, "I believe she will be able to join us after the Earth Mars Satellite is destroyed."

I'm sure Kaldur can see me smile through my helmet.

* * *

 **Thanks for reading.**

 **Next time: How did Bart get a time machine?**


End file.
